1. Technical Field of the Invention
The invention relates to a compression bandage in the form of an elongated rectangle made of a textile fabric, on which a hook strip is fastened along a narrow side on a small portion of a lateral face, the hook side, the fabric containing elastic filaments running in a longitudinal direction and, in the transversal direction, consists of virtually inelastic supporting filaments.
2. Description of the Prior Art
In the case of operations in the region of the breast, e.g. shape changes of the breasts or, in the case of heart operations, large internal wound areas remain, which are pressed together by means of an external compression bandage until they have developed sufficient inherent stability as a result of the healing. Otherwise, cavities occur, which result in a delay of the healing process and increased scarring.
Scars are unwelcome, particularly in the case of plastic surgery on the breast. Therefore, in the prior art, a bandage is placed around the patient's breast after the operation. This bandage is elastic and exerts an adjustable pressure on the entire covered region of the thorax and therefore also on the scar. As a result, the wound areas and the edges of the wound are pressed together and the process of healing is supported, accelerated and the results improved.
In the prior art, elastic bandages are, inter alia, used for this. However they can only be applied after the operation with some difficulty, since they usually must be placed several times around the thorax. Because of their soft characteristics, this requires lifting the patient or sitting the patient up, which can harm the wound. Although conventional hook-shaped closures can be applied to any point on the elastic bandage, the hook represents a risk of injury for the skin region lying below it. Elastic bandages have the tendency to slip, to constrict and not to maintain constant compression over a sufficiently long period.
A common alternative is elastic bands with a short hook-and-loop closure. This hook-and-loop closure consists of a hook strip at one end of the elastic strip and the fleece strip at the other end of the strip, on the other side. A disadvantage of this principle is that the hook strip and fleece strip must, to a large extent, cover one another, since the hook strip does not adhere on the other regions of the elastic strip. As a result, on application, the active length can only be varied within the small limits of the length of the hook strip and the fleece strip. Doubling of the compressive force is therefore impossible in practice There are also complaints of the tendency to constrict and form wrinkles. That is particularly problematic under the hook-and-loop fastening, since constrictions and wrinkles cause pressure points on the skin, which lead to skin injuries in the long term.
These effects greatly obstruct the healing process in the wound area and lead to a scar that is both optically and haptically unsatisfactory. Consequently, the chief aim of undisturbed healing is not provided.
In the prior art, so-called “thorax compression shirts” are used, which contain elastic filaments and thereby press on the skin. However, it is disadvantageous that the compressive pressure can hardly be varied and also that thorax shirts of different size increments must be kept in stock for patients of different sizes.